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Governor, law enforcement and mayors back magistrate-backed amendment to adjust PR bail for repeat offenders; advocates urge caution
Summary
Testimony on House Bill 592 and a governor-supported amendment focused on tightening release rules for repeat offenders and those who violate bail conditions produced broad support from police chiefs, sheriffs and the governor’s office, while defense and civil-rights groups urged more time for the new magistrate-based system to operate.
The Criminal Justice and Public Safety subcommittee heard extended testimony on House Bill 592 and a governor-supported amendment that would restrict release for people who repeatedly fail to appear, violate bail conditions or commit new offenses while on release.
Miles Matheson of the governor’s office told the committee the amendment is “designed to protect our communities, protect law enforcement,” and to close “a revolving door whereby repeat offenders are exposed to the community and committing crimes again.” Tom Velarde, director of the Department of Justice’s Division of Public Protection, cited national studies and local case examples and said empirical evidence supports tailoring a mechanism to address a small subset of offenders who repeatedly reenter the…
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